Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a method for making contact with semiconductor components as well as to a corresponding semiconductor component fabricated by the method according to the invention.
During the production of semiconductor components, individual cells of the semiconductor component are connected to one another and to terminals leading to the outside. That is usually accomplished through the use of one or more interconnect planes made of aluminum. In order to connect the interconnect planes to switching elements in the semiconductor, contact holes are etched through the insulator layers on the actual semiconductor substrate to establish electrical contact between the interconnect plane and the elements of the cell.
During the fabrication of contact holes, it is necessary to take account of certain requirements of the subsequent contact-making. During the fabrication of a contact hole with a rectangular cross-sectional profile, problems having to do with edge coverage frequently arise in the production of an Al layer for the contact-making. The Al layers often have constrictions at the edges. At those points, there may then be an intensified transport of material in the conductor and consequently interconnect breaks, due to the increased current density.
A contact hole having a rectangular cross-sectional profile and a contact hole with beveled edges are discussed in detail below with reference to FIGS. 2 and 3. However, the prior art methods do not permit high contact hole density to be achieved on the semiconductor in conjunction with high reliability of electrical contacts and the prior art semiconductor components do not have reliable electrical contacts.